Different Day, Same Shit.

Just about anyone who followed the Electronic Bingo Boogaloo series or read Legal Schnauzer's numerous posts on bingo and corruption already know one thing: that the pols in Alabama have been bought, paid for and giftwrapped by the Poarch Creek Indians and out-of-state gambling interests. So it didn't surprise me to read about state attorney general Luther Strange bringing the pain to Southern Star Entertainment in White Hall two years after receiving $100,000 in campaign contributions from the Poarch Creek Indian Tribe. Just as the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians expected Bob Riley to deliver on their $13 million investment, the Poarch Creek tribe wants Strange to deliver, as well.

I thought we were done with this, especially after current Governor Robert Bentley declared the era of the Electronic Bingo Boogaloo to be over and done with and certainly after Bob Riley rode off into the sunset on his Harley Davidson for parts unknown. But in the Great State of Alabama, nothing's ever really "done." This is the place where the same "quid pro quo" can land Democrat politicians in the poke until they grow too old (Don Siegelman) or too dead (Larry Langford) to be politically effective.

So the beat goes on. And it will go on until the financial and political costs of buying and selling key politicians to maintain virtual business monopolies becomes too painful to bear. I don't see that happening any time soon, sadly.

The Great State of Alabama has had more of its fair share of embarrassing moments. A few days ago, one of those moments came to an abrupt end:

Jurors have found VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor and five other defendants not guilty of all charges in the retrial of a government corruption case.
Jurors announced that they had reached a decision early this morning on their seventh day of deliberations.

McGregor; lobbyist Tom Coker; former Country Crossing casino spokesman Jay Walker; Sen. Harri Anne Smith, I-Slocomb; and former state Sens. Larry Means, D-Attalla, and Jim Preuitt, R-Talladega, are on trial accused of offering or accepting bribes in connection with a 2010 gambling bill.

The legislation was aimed at sheltering bingo casinos from state efforts to shut them down by authorizing a statewide vote on gambling.

Throughout the trial prosecutors attempted to paint the six defendants as greedy criminals that resorted to bribery because of their lust for money and power. But defense lawyer Joe Espy and others countered there was a total failure of proof in the case and that the prosecution was built on the testimony of "crooks" with plea deals and people with political motivations.

The case first went to trial last summer. Jurors deliberated for seven days before returning multiple not guilty verdicts but saying they were hopelessly deadlocked on other charges.
Prosecutors presented a pared down case this time. Prosecutors put on just two weeks of evidence compared to seven weeks in the first trial.

McGregor's charges he was found not guilty of this morning included three counts of federal programs bribery and one county of conspiracy.

The case was the latest in a series of government corruption investigations in Alabama, including the conviction of former Gov. Don Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy on bribery charges in 2006 and a probe of Alabama's two-year college system that brought down three legislators and the system's former chancellor in 2008.

The main pattern to look for is the accused and convicted bearing either the "D" at the end of their names or being known for having liberal stances. Yep, folks, these convictions were, for the most part, politically motivated. Not only did bottling up the forces most positive towards the legalization of electronic bingo secure the financial futures of both the Mississippi casino gambling interests and Alabama's own Poarch Creek Indian gambling interests, but it also secured the political futures of countless Republicans, as well as paving the way for current governor Robert Bentley.

In the end, Alabamians fell for the long con: the big guys get all of the money and the people they want in office and the average Alabamian is too busy declaring a moral victory over gambling or lamenting McGregor's acquittal to notice. Alabama is always thankful for receiving the long end of the stick in the wrong places.

Legal Schnauzer is a bit displeased that the Obama administration didn't nip this in the bud from the get-go, allowing Bush-era appointees within the Justice Department to run wild with political corruption cases designed to tar and feather Democrats and just about anyone not affiliated with the Grand Old Party or Alabama's special circle of good ol' boys and cronies:

If any of this shines unflattering light on the Obama administration, so be it. The president has either adopted many of George W. Bush's wrong-headed notions on justice--or turned a blind eye on his predecessor's corrupt activities--so now it's time for Eric Holder and company to "enjoy" some scrutiny under a white hot light. If it costs Obama the 2012 election . . . well, tough beans. The president has repeatedly proven that he is not deserving of progressives' support anyway.

The Alabama bingo investigation/trial was a disgrace from the outset, and the public deserves answers on why millions of its dollars were wasted on a sideshow designed to help Alabama Republicans. Obama has had almost four years to do the right thing on the justice front--to return us to a nation governed by the rule of law--and he has failed at every turn. He and his "justice department" deserve to be exposed.

Apologies to Legal Schnauzer, but I have to call a time-out. I'm not about to dump a truckload of blame on the president or Holder for this entire fiasco, but I will place blame where it's due.

If anything, President Obama can be blamed for not taking time out to clean house of the Shrub's old appointees littering the Justice Dept. and federal court system. Holder may have stood by and did nothing, but it was hangers-on like Leura Canary who made it possible for a clear-cut case of political prosecution to go on largely unchecked.

However, the last thing the president should do is attempt to knock heads over this issue before November. Turning over stones this early could easily give the GOP permission to paint themselves as "victims" of a "vendetta-driven housecleaning to insure Obama's reelection," something that'll give them renewed vigor and a way to scuttle the president's reelection chances.

BTW, as of yesterday, Alabama Republicans released their collective load of Santorum all over the state, leaving Mormon robot Mitt Romney a bit miffed as his attempts to assimilate his program into the standard Southeastern U.S. lifestyle and reconcile their belief subroutines with his own resulted in a suitable lack of response from the "Southern" flesh forms.

At some point, you have to wonder when Bob Riley will finally find himself sporting a pair of those shiny linked bracelets. Between the federal bingo case falling apart and questions being raised about his connections with the Poarch Creek Indians and Mississippi gambling interests, it's only a matter of time before Alabama's former governor finds himself in front of a grand jury. Or at least that's the hope.

Legal Schnauzer has the skinny on how Riley blew through $4 million of Alabama's taxpayer dollars on a crusade to keep his handlers and the low information morality types happy by keeping electronic bingo out of Alabama.

Let's get this one out the way, first:

Larry Wyatt said his last $23 dollars were in one of the machines and he wasn't allowed to cash out. "I'm 25 years old and I've got a baby. I'm just here trying to make some money to survive," the West End resident said.

Remember when Milton McGregor and 10 other legislators and lobbyists were put in the clink for their roles in the electronic bingo scandal?

Jurors have found all defendants in the bingo trial either not guilty on each charge, or they were unable to decide a verdict. The judge has said he will declare a mistrial on any undecided charges.

After days of deliberation, the jury couldn't come up with a verdict on some of the charges and gave "Not Guilty" verdicts on others. Legal Schnauzer has much, much more on the goings on in the trial at his blog, including this rather interesting tid-bit:

* By far, the most important witness in the trial figured to be former Republican Governor Bob Riley. After all, it was Riley's crusade to stamp out gaming in Alabama that led to the bingo prosecution. It was Riley's documented ties to GOP felons Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon that sullied the Alabama political landscape in recent years. In fact, Riley's apparent desire to protect the market share of his Mississippi Choctaw backers was the overarching story behind the bingo case. Attorneys for defendant and gambling magnate Milton McGregor made quite a show of their intentions to call Riley as a witness. And sources tell Legal Schnauzer that McGregor's lawyers conducted pre-trial discovery with Mississippi Choctaw officials that shed significant light on Riley's actions. The defense, however, barely voiced a whimper before closing up shop without calling Riley. What gives? Has some sort of agreement--a fix, in other words--been reached by all parties involved?

Riley was slated to be a star witness in the trial, until his motorcycle accident in Alaska gave him an out from doing just that. Speaking of that guy, it seems he's been a bit preoccupied with ventures of his own.


What happens when the former governor of Alabama gives a company a $5 million dollar "economic development" grant during his term in office? Well, probably nothing except some "economic development" from that corporate entity.

Now, what if the former governor decides to register as a lobbyist and lands a job representing that very same company and others he had tangible ties to? No, that odor you're smelling isn't the local fish market.

Riley reported on his Ethics Commission lobbyist registration statement that he represented two clients starting in June and three more starting in July. He said his clients include Austal USA, which is building warships for the Navy at its shipyard in Mobile...

...Riley on his lobbyist registration statement also listed EADS North America as a client. EADS in February lost a competition with Boeing to build new refueling tanker aircraft for the Air Force. EADS had planned to assemble its tanker in Mobile if it had won.

Riley also reported that he represented Gulf Coast Asphalt Co., based in Houston; Brett Real Estate, Robinson Development Co. in Saraland; and VT Systems Inc. in Alexandria, Va., parent of a company that operates an aircraft maintenance facility in Mobile.

Looks as though it's a case of yet another politician sticking his snout back in the trough for seconds. And thirds. You'd figure that this would stink just a wee bit of conflict-of-interest:

Sen. Roger Bedford, D-Russellville, minority leader in the state Senate, questioned the appropriateness of Riley getting paid to lobby for a company that received state incentives when he was governor. "It could be a conflict of interest," Bedford said.

You'd be surprised and possibly shocked at the amount of corruption that goes on in this lil' ol' state:

Two days after Monica Cooper personally donated $100,000 to a Republican political action committee, five party officials received bonuses from the PAC of $38,000 each.


A second Republican PAC reimbursed Cooper, prompting state Democratic Party Chair Mark Kennedy to complain last week that the transaction and several other smaller ones violated the state's new law banning PAC-to-PAC transfers.

Before Cooper's contribution, there wasn't enough money in the 136 Years PAC to make those payments, according to campaign finance reports filed by the PAC...

...Two days later, the $38,000 checks were issued to John Ross, the party's executive director and the chair of the 136 Years PAC; Philip Bryan, party communications director; Kate Anderson and Sidney Rue, finance co-directors for the party; and Michael Joffrion, the party's political director.

"None of the money paid us was taken from the party or taxpayers," he said. "It was from people who appreciated the work we did."


Byran, who said his party salary was $50,000, said the five were promised bonuses in 2009 of $1,200 each for every Democratic legislative seat the Republicans were able to "flip" in the 2010 elections. He said Ross told him and his co-workers on election night they would receive the bonuses.

This doesn't seem the slightest bit unusual if you're used to PACs disappearing shortly after handing out large sums of money.

NOTE: The comments are working again, at least on my end. I suppose some ad-blocker setting on my browser got crossed up.

Yeah, I probably should get on with figuring out how the city of Birmingham can cure itself of "civic anemia". Or blogging about how Jefferson County is slowly headed down the road to Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy. Instead, yours truly will attempt to figure out what the hell is up with the state of Alabama and its never-ending quest to embarrass and impoverish itself further by playing hopscotch with whether or not bingo (or more importantly, electronic bingo) should be allowed in the state.

To start things off, here's a salient fact about the great state of Alabama: it's surrounded on all four sides by states that have some legalized form of gambling. Tennessee, Georgia and Florida have state lotteries, while Mississippi has full-on casinos, with slots, poker, blackjack, etc, etc. And every day, Alabamians leave their great state to visit these seething dens of vice and corruption, thus contributing to the bottom lines of these states, to the detriment of the great state of Alabama.

Now, you'd figure that the citizens of this great state would want to enact some sort of enterprise that can generate the kind of revenue that these forms of gambling create. After all, gambling is probably the only enterprise outside of exotic dancing where people are literally throwing money at you. Not so for this state, on both religious and legal grounds. Except on Native American reservations within the state -- more on that later.

In order to work around the legal and religious objections, a number of enterprising groups and companies have instead introduced "charity bingo" as way for people to satiate their desire to gamble while staying on the good side of the law. It's similar to regular bingo, only that instead of the right to shout "BINGO" after you won and possibly a few cheap trinkets as compensation, you receive a cash prize or an equivalent that can be redeemed for cash. According to the charitable gaming laws in the state, it's all legal, and many counties have their own constitutional amendments authorizing bingo for charitable purposes. If the sheriff of your county says it's OK, then for all intents and purposes, it's legal.

The problem comes with electronic bingo. Instead of paper bingo cards, you have electronic touchscreen machines, some of which may look too much like slot machines for their own good (check the pictures here for an example). Which is a problem, since Alabama does not condone this sort of gambling (check Section 13A-12-20 through 92), nor the possession of such devices used to facilitate gambling. The end result is a constant game of "is it or is it not", where state troopers drop by to close up your place of business and confiscate your machines, while you do battle in court, hoping the judge will determine that your machines are kosher and hopefully give them back so you can set up shop, again.
(More after the break)